Cherry Valley native makes Grand Ole Opry debut with standing ovation

The Grand Ole Opry stage in Nashville is a long way from Mo Pitney’s old Baumann Park stomping grounds in Cherry Valley, but with a simple, reverent performance, he made it his own.

On June 20, when the 22-year-old Pitney took the stage for his Opry debut, he did something that had not been seen in 13 years. The up-and-coming country singer earned a standing ovation after performing his first song, a ballad called “Clean Up on Aisle 5” he co-wrote with Wil Nance.

“I’ve been there probably 200 times, and I’ve never seen anything like it,” said Pete Keiser, Pitney’s manager, about the ovation that, by some counts, lasted nearly a minute.

Even Pete Fisher, general manager of the Grand Ole Opry, was impressed.

“When I headed off stage, Pete Fisher shook my hand and said, ‘We’ll be writing about this in the Opry history book. It was a ‘Long Black Train moment.’ That’s the last time we’ve had a reaction like this,’ ” recalled Pitney.

The reference was to a Dec. 21, 2001, debut performance by award-winning country music singer Josh Turner. But this night belonged to Pitney.

After hearing him sing, country star Lee Ann Womack tweeted, “heard @mopitney (& sis Holly) on opry as i was driving up 2 the house 2night..bout ran the car into the fountain..GOOD LORD COUNTRY’S BACK”

For Pitney it was an emotional validation of years of hard work writing, singing and strumming.

“I didn’t get emotional at first but when I stepped back to the mic they got louder and it really hit me,” he said. “There was just a magic there that night. I’ve been in (Nashville) for three years and working so hard. I play for the label, people and my family, and I get nice reactions, but the real reward is the reaction I got from the audience. This is why I wake up every day and write songs. To have that many people react that way is amazing.”

When the house settled down, Pitney wrapped up his two-song set on the legendary stage with “Country,” which he wrote with Bill Anderson and Bobby Tomerlin.

The debut performance was the stuff of dreams, but Pitney said it was just the first step in what he hopes to be a long journey.

“I hope there are a lot of nights like that, but I woke up the next morning knowing I have to recreate this,” said Pitney. “Personally, that night’s the highlight of my life, but I know I have to better that and push forward. The second you think you’ve made it you stop growing.”

Page 2 of 2 - Pitney signed with Curb Records in May and will be touring country radio stations in the fall. His first CD will hit the streets after the tour.

Before he was the subject of tweets from world-famous country music singers, the Cherry Valley native spent his youth biking and fishing around Baumann Park, captivated by singers like Merle Haggard, George Jones, James Taylor and Randy Newman and the stories they wove.

“I’d listen to their songs and it made sense to me what they were saying,” he said. “I love the songs, the heartfelt melodies and the music. ... It’s not that I picked country; it’s that country picked me. The way I live and the way I interpret songs, if I open my mouth to sing a song it comes out country.”